Hypericum inodorum cultivar Kolmbeau.
The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Hypericum plant, botanically known as Hypericum inodorum, commercially used as cut stems with fruits, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Kolmbeauxe2x80x99.
The new Hypericum is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Wageningen, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program was to develop cut Hypericum varieties with attractive fruit coloration.
The new cultivar originated from a cross made by the Inventor in 1998 of two unidentified proprietary seedling selections, not patented. The cultivar Kolmbeau was discovered and selected by the Inventor in 2000 as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Asexual reproduction of the new Hypericum by terminal cuttings taken at Boskoop, The Netherlands, has shown that the unique features of this new Hypericum are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Kolmbeauxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Kolmbeauxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Upright and outwardly spreading plant habit.
2. Dark green leaves.
3. Salmon orange-colored fruits.
4. Good postproduction longevity.
5. Resistance to rust pathogens.
Plants of the new Hypericum differ from plants of the parent seedling selections primarily in fruit coloration.
Plants of the new Hypericum can be compared to plants of the Hypericum cultivar Excellent Flair, not patented. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in Boskoop, The Netherlands, plants of the new Hypericum differed from plants of the cultivar Excellent Flair in the following characteristics:
1. Plant of the new Hypericum were more freely branching than plants of the cultivar Excellent Flair.
2. Leaves of plants of the new Hypericum did not sunburn whereas leaves of plants of the cultivar Excellent Flair sunburned.
3. Fruits of plants of the new Hypericum were salmon orange in color whereas fruits of plants of the cultivar Excellent Flair were red brown in color.